Multi-factor authentication or MFA provides the strongest protection against hackers gaining access to your accounts if they happen to get your password. If you receive an alert from your MFA app that you were not expecting, DO NOT ACCEPT the request. Hackers may be attempting to gain access to your account with compromised credentials, and if you approve the MFA request, they have complete access to your account. They may be very persistent in trying to gain access; do not grant access just to silence the alerts. To learn more about how UMB uses MFA click here. 

Installing software updates is critical to keeping your computer safe.  

Install programs from a trusted source and keep the definitions up-to-date and enable automatic definition updates. 

Local firewalls provide an additional layer of protection from hackers trying to exploit open ports.

Once a hacker has access to your username and password, they will try all of the larger banks and online merchants to see if the credentials will gain them access to additional sites. Use a password manager to automatically create and manage strong passwords for each online account you have.

Current backups may be the only protection you have in the event that you experience a ransomware attack, and your hard drive is encrypted. Where possible, create local non-attached backups as well as online cloud backups of your computer weekly or at least monthly to ensure that you will not lose your personal data.

Computers that are locked or shut down provide security from hackers or curious individuals trying to gain access to an open system. Users of UMB network resources are required to have a user password at startup and must “Lock Down" (or log out of) the computer each time it is left unattended. Individual user sessions also must initiate a password-protected screensaver after a period of no more than 30 minutes of inactivity. Never leave devices unattended.

Phishing scams are a constant threat. Using social engineering tactics, the hackers will try to trick you into clicking malicious links or divulging personal information that can be used to compromise your accounts.

Carefully examine links in emails before clicking on them. Identify where that link goes by hovering your cursor over the link without clicking. Your browser will show you the link address. Don’t click on it if it doesn’t go where you are expecting it to go.

Hackers will spoof Wi-Fi hotspots from popular public wireless areas hoping that an individual will not notice that they are not connected to the business Wi-Fi. They will collect all information transmitted by you and then use it later to gain access to your accounts. Using a VPN will encrypt your traffic, making it impossible for hackers to gain access to your credentials.